Her Smile is Dead
by LightCreatesTheShadowLullaby
Summary: From the slums, she grew up learning how to survive in that tragic world. Growing up alone, she knows nothing of love, family, and anything positive. She considered herself dead; gone; dark; hollow. Then, a certain encounter puts her on a whole other path. Will she accept this drastic change? But, first, can you really bring back the dead? Like how you kill the living.
1. Chapter 1

There was a kid who hides within the shadows in order to survive every day because every second counted. The kid lived in the darkest parts of Magnolia. The kid was a ten-year-old girl. Every day, she was beaten, stealing, fighting, and—of course—hiding. She taught herself everything that she needed to survive by instinct. Rage and distrust flared within her cold, crystallized blue orbs.

Who knew that five years later that she would have an encounter that changed the rest of her life?

She is now fifteen years of age and is still doing what she did since she learned how to speak. Her clothes were still the same—ragged, ripped, worn out, and dirty. Her only weapon: her firsts. She's best known for hand-to-hand combat. She had earned the title of the "Merciless Thieving Bandit." Her appearance? Still the same—dark locks of naturally curly hair that went to just below her ears, a mole under her left eye, still the same cold, crystallized blue orbs, and an above average build. Her mind? Still the same, really—only filled with negativity, dark enough to blind someone without light. Her heart? Yup, still the same—with no door.

Looking around, the teenager saw a pink-haired guy walking with a pile of cash in his hands. _That should last me about a week or two_, she thought. Swiftly, she made her way behind him. Casually, she walked beside and took the money before he could chase after her. When she reached the corner, she ran until she met the nearest alley to hide in. Slowing down her breathing, she could hear the guy screaming at her to give back his money.

"OI! GIVE ME BACK MY MONEY! I WAS GOING TO BUY SOMETHING TO EAT WITH THAT!"

_All this money for one meal? What is this guy, a millionaire?_

Then, everything became quiet. The guy didn't scream at her anymore. "Found you." The girl jumped at the sudden touch on her shoulder. She looked up to see the victim of her crime smiling down at her. She got up to run, but he grabbed her hand, holding her back.

"LET GO!" she hollered. "LET—" she cut herself off as she heard her stomach growl.

"Are you hungry?" he said, letting go of her hand.

"NO! Of course not!" Her stomach growled again, and she flushed from embarrassment.

"See? You _are _hungry!" He grabbed her hand again and dragged her with him as she kept telling him to let her go along the way. She tried to break away a few times, but he was just too strong for her. They entered a place with people laughing, smiling, and talking as far as the eye could see. The poor girl was still trying to break free of his grip and shouting, which drew attention to them.

"Oi, Natsu! You're back?"

Natsu grunted a reply. "Mirajane, can you please get this girl here something to eat?"

"Sure."

Natsu then plopped her into a nearby chair and said, "Stay." It was like he was treating her as a pet. "Oh, and before I forget, hand me back my money."

"Tch! Like I would!"

"Give it back!" He reached for it, but she moved it farther away from him.

"Mine!"

"It's _mine_. I worked for it!" Natsu held a tight grip on her wrist with one hand, making her wince, and took the money with the other. Just when she reached out for it, he put it in his pocket and ruffled her hair. Confused, she looked at him. Natsu gave her a huge grin and laughed a bit. "Want to join our guild?"

The girl was silent for a while. That is, until she said, "What the hell is that?"

"A guild? Um...it's like...a...uh...ah! It's like a family."

"Absurd! I don't need a family. I'm good just the way I am—alone."

Natsu's eyes became serious, and he said sternly, "The way you live says another." Mirajane interrupted the tension by placing the food in front of the strange girl.

"Eat up!" The girl was about to refuse, but her stomach growled again, so she gave in to the temptation that was in front of her. Natsu sat down next to her after he got his share of food from Mirajane.

"Thank you for the food!" Natsu cheerily said. On the other hand, the rude female stayed silent even after finishing her meal. Natsu let it go, however, because he knew how she grew up. "So, what's your name?"

"I don't have one."

"EH?!" Everyone in the room went quiet and paid attention to them. "HOW CAN YOU _NOT_ HAVE A NAME?!"

"I've lived in slums alone since birth. Do you really think someone would name me?"

"That's true," he mumbled as he rubbed his chin. When he was out of thought, he exclaimed, "How about 'Erin'? It sounds pretty, right?"

"Humph, I don't need a name to sound pretty." Natsu ruffled her hair with a little more force than last time.

"Idiot! If you don't have a name, it's like you're a package with no label; a story without a title; a maid with no one to serve; fire without heat; ice without cold; voice without sound; light without warmth!" The fifteen-year-old stayed silent. "Besides, 'Erin' sounds really nice! How can you not like it?!" he said in a very childish voice as he pouted.

"I'll take it."

"Huh?" He looked up at her.

"I said, 'I'll take it.' The name, I mean." Natsu put her in a headlock and gave her a noogie.

"You cute little...! Haha!"

From that day onward, the nameless fawn became a beautiful, young girl with the matching name of Erin. But, one thing still remains: her smile is still dead.

* * *

**A fanfiction for my classmate, Yannina Dang. I call her Nina, though. I write faster when it's a fanfiction, so disregard your story. I'll still finish it, though. Anyways, remember when I told you not to regret it later? Yeah, I meant this. So, this is going to be Natsu x Nina~^^ Erin is such a pretty name, don't you think? I like it. x3 Oh, and it might take a while for me to update any chapters—this goes to all my stories and fanfictions—because I am studying and reading manga, and there are also days where I don't feel like writing anything or with no ideas, so bear with me. And, I do realize that this chapter was a drag with many words but little action and interesting stuff that I usually write. (It's most likely because it's in third person.) Until next time, my fellow readers~^^ I haven't said that in a while. Lol. I do not own Fairy Tail. I do not own anything but my OC and my story/stories.**


	2. Chapter 2

Later on that day, Natsu had forced her to join Fairy Tail. Erin has her ocean blue insignia on the side of her neck, saying it looked cooler that way. He promised her that she wouldn't regret joining the gang, but as it stands right now, she's regretting it—_a lot_. Not to the point of leaving Fairy Tail, though. Natsu let Erin stay at his place with Happy, and he treats her like family, buys clothes for her, and everything. Sounds like a boyfriend (or a doting father, but that's not the point). Natsu is even teaching Erin how to read and write. That is taking _quite_ a while. (Erin is still trying to learn the alphabet. Again, it's not hard to believe since Natsu is the one teaching her.) The only thing he can't seem to teach her is manners.

"Erin! That's wrong. 'Best' is spelled b-e-s-t, not b-e-s-f."

Natsu is in the middle of a lesson with Erin, but Erin just doesn't seem to grasp the information.

"You can't blame me! Those two letters look the same to me! Man, I've had enough learning for today!"

Erin went up to the request board and looked at all the jobs she could take. Happy followed her and lightly tapped the side of her leg to get her attention. "Hey, Erin, what job are you going to take?"

"Hm...maybe this one for 800,000 Jewels."

"800,000 Jewels?! What does it say?"

"It's kind of blurry to me. Happy, can you read it for me?"

"Hm...we need to get you glasses," Happy muttered to himself. "Well, um...it says...that you have to...perform."

"Perform? Perform what?"

"I don't know. That's all it says." As Erin was thinking about whether or not she should take the job, Natsu appears next to her.

"Hey, we were in the middle of a lesson! Don't just walk out on me like that! So, what are you guys doing?" Then, he noticed the request she was looking at. "Oh, that? I think you have to do it a whole week. I overheard Erza talking about it." Unsurprisingly, Natsu forgot about his anger from the change of subjects.

"A whole week is fine, I guess, if I get that money."

Natsu has always wanted to ask her just why in the world would she need money for so badly, but he had made up his mind that he'd rather hear it from her directly. It might be a touchy subject, after all.

Erin sat down at the table with Erza. She was eating her favorite strawberry shortcake, so she was in a good mood. Erin asked her about the job, and Erza said, "The performing one? I went out and asked the person who requested it, and it seems that you'd be putting up a little entertainment at a wedding."

"What type of entertainment?"

"They said they wanted someone who could play an instrument. I want to take the job, but I can't play any instrument." Erza pouted and sulked as she ate her shortcake.

"Hm...music, eh?" Erin stands up and shouts, "Okay, I've made up my mind! I'm going to take the job!"

"That was pretty dramatic, wasn't it, Natsu?" Happy asked.

"Y-yeah..."

"Erin, can you even play an instrument?"

Erin looked a bit embarrassed by the way she acted. "A-a little...I guess," she stuttered as she glanced at the floor and scratched her left cheek with her index finger.

"Who taught you?"

"Well...that's..." She continued to stare at the ground. "Well, um, got to go! Maybe I'll tell you about it next time!" Erin ran out of the place and turned the corner on the right. Slumped against the wall, she sighs. Looking up, she sees that nostalgic sign above a shop. Through the window glass, Erin checked inside the place. "Okay, good. He's not there." She walked inside as quietly as she could and sat at the displaying black grand piano on the right side of the store. "It's been _quite_ a while since I came here." She chuckled at her own little joke. "A day, to be exact."

Her right hand rose like a young leaf being carried by the gentle breeze, and lightly tapped out each note of a familiar tune of "The Sight of Dreams" by The Jokers. Erin unconsciously started humming, and before she knew it, she was singing along to the dreadful lyrics.

_Oh, before the night ends,_

_Let there be a dream in which I have killed all my friends._

_Oh, the Joker in me has laughed out loud._

_Of me, he is certainly proud._

_The deeds that I have done,_

_Let them be the only things I cannot shun._

_This is the sight of dreams,_

_Let them speak out with screams._

_This lovely sight of dreams,_

_It brings tears to my eyes, it seems._

She sang just fine as a canary, but all the while as dark and full of melancholy like a crow. Even though she started singing in the middle of the song, she didn't miss a word or a note. As usual when she sang, people started to show at the windows, staring in and looking at the fifteen-year-old kid at the grand piano. They gathered around; some going into the shop for a closer look and clearer sound. No one thought of how sad the song was; they only thought of how the youngster could sing so well.

The owner showed up, yelling at Erin for coming in unwanted and playing the displaying piano again as she sang, still in the middle of the song. "Hey, Cold Eyes, how dare you sneak in here without my permission again?!"

"Sorry, I just couldn't help it. Piano, here, just looked so lonely without me playing it."

The older man sighed and yelled, "It's an even bigger disgrace if you play her without even knowing how to play correctly! You are certainly hopeless. Here,"—took Erin's hand and bent it so that the wrist was popping up, then let go—"let your hand relax as you play. You're too stiff. That's not a good sign. You'll tire before the song is even over. And, because you're a beginner at this, don't go showing off with lifting your hand in the air after hitting just a few chords until you can master being relax. Instead, glide your fingers over the keys, gently enough so that you don't accidentally press one, though."

_Mr. Strict is actually really nice, despite how bad his words are when he's yelling at you_, Erin thought.

"Okay, that's good. Like this, you can find the right keys without having to look. Practice this until you can't get it wrong, got it?"

"Yes, sir!"

After a few more songs, the sun began to set. Erin thanked the man, and just before she left, he told her, "Next time, you don't have to sneak in, you know. If you just want to play music, I don't mind as long as you ask. Don't just go around acting like a thief again, you hear me?"

"Yes, sir! I heard you loud and clear! Bye bye!" She waved at him as she went out the door, and he waved back at her until she was out of sight. "I hope I wasn't followed or anything to that place... It'd be troublesome if they found out. That's why if they followed me and I find out that they did, I'll beat the shit out of them."

In the midst of Erin thinking, Natsu and Happy were actually there the whole time. They tailed her when she ran away. The two actually wanted to call out to Erin, but that was before they heard what she said, and they don't want to be beaten up. That's why they kept their mouths shut and hurried back to the guild.

* * *

Natsu ran into the guild and sat himself at a nearby table with Happy. "S-safe!" he panted. He is super happy that he knows that Erin can play so well, so happy that he began to smile unconsciously before letting out a small laugh.

About a few minutes after the two sat their excited little butts down, Erin arrived at the house. No one was home, so it was dark. Softly, she murmured, "I'm home," before turning on the lights. Pretty lonely, she is, but she doesn't let that show, does she? Erin took a quick shower before going to bed without dinner.

An hour or so later, Natsu and Happy dragged themselves home. Happy had plopped himself on a pillow and was already fast asleep. Natsu took off his waistcoat and was about to take a bath when he noticed Erin sleeping on the couch. He smiled to himself before carrying her to her bed. Just as he covered her with the blanket, he saw tears slowly falling on the side of her eyes. Natsu lightly ruffled her hair and whispered, "Good night." Then, he turned the lights off, with the exception of the small light night next to Erin's bed, before going into the bathroom.

Natsu thought as he soaked in the warm water of the bath. It wasn't rare that he would find Erin crying in her sleep, and that worried him. Every night when he'd find her like that, he hoped that she would have good dreams, but that has still gotten nowhere. No matter how strong Erin would act, she's still a girl. She has things she fears; things she wished she still had; things she doesn't want to lose. He knew she grew up with lots of problems. He knew that she tries to deal with all of them alone. He just wishes for her to depend on him more. He just wants her to know that he's there for her; that he's not going to go anywhere, but why can't she see that?

He puts his head under the water for a moment before popping back up to the surface, panting. Natsu just wanted to clear his head. He got out and drained the water. Then, he put on his clothes and roughly dried his hair. Natsu made his way to the window in Erin's room. He opened it up and sat on the sill, looking at Erin as she slept. "What can I do to help her...?" he questioned himself. Looking up at the sky, he stared at the bright full moon watching over them. He closed his eyes and sighed; a small flame of fire blew out from his mouth. "I just want to see her smile."

* * *

**Sorry for not updating in a while. I've been too lazy these days. School starts again in a few weeks. Ugh... I don't want to get up so early. Lol. For the part where Natsu ruffled Erin's hair, I wanted it to be a good night kiss, but he's not the type to give out kisses, sadly. And, this is random, but I've been reading _Nukoduke!_ for a while now, and Sesame-chan and Kei are absolutely adorable~! Now, back to the topic of this fanfiction, I'm going to put more cute scenes in for Natsu and Erin, and it won't be too far or anything. (It might just be a few hugs and kisses. I don't know.) And, this is extremely early, but I'll go ahead and tell you, anyway. For the ending, I was thinking of letting the two get married, maybe have a kid or two. o-o _But_, I'm not sure yet. My classmate might yell at me. Lol. She might be like, "You made me marry Natsu...and have kids with him...? Sigh. Come here. *punches*" Anyways, that's it for this chapter. Until next time, my fellow readers~!^^ I do not own Fairy Tail. I do not own anything except my OC and my story/stories.**


	3. Chapter 3

With the birds chirping their little songs, dawn came, and Erin finally woke up. She sat up and stretched. Blinking once, twice, then thrice. Only then did she realize that she was in her bed. _Natsu must have brought me here last night_, she thought. Erin noticed the sudden breeze in the room and looked to her window. It was open, and on the sill was Natsu, asleep. He must have been really tired to be able to fall asleep there; seeing as it was a bit chilly and he didn't have his waistcoat on.

Not wanting him to catch a cold, Erin brought over a small blanket from the drawer and a pillow from her bed. She was able to cover him with the blanket, but when she tried to place the pillow under his head, he opened his eyes, and they stared into each other's eyes.

"Oh, Erin, you're awake." Then, Natsu noticed the blanket on top of him and the pillow in her hands. He gave her a huge grin and cheerily said, "Thanks, Erin!" Surprised from his reaction, Erin unconsciously threw the pillow in Natsu's face before speaking up.

"W...w-whatever! What do you want for breakfast?!"

And, just like a kid, he threw his fists in the air and chanted, "Hamburger steak! Hamburger steak! Hamburger steak!"

Rolling up her sleeve, she commanded him, "Okay, go wake up Happy while I get breakfast ready."

"Understood!" he said before saluting. Like a soldier, he marched out the room and went to wake up the still asleep Happy.

Erin murmured under her breath, "Childish brat." Luckily, Natsu didn't hear her words. And so, Erin began making hamburger steak for breakfast.

Meanwhile, Natsu and Happy were playing catch outside. "Happy, see if you can catch this one!" Natsu threw the rubber, white ball a little farther than the last time, and Happy had flown there to catch it in an instant. "Ah, I can never get it passed you!" He laughed.

Happy had landed on the ground, and Natsu walked over to him, seeing as he wasn't going to throw the ball back to him. Natsu was about to ask him what was wrong, but Happy answered before he even got a word out. "Hey, Natsu, I'm _really_ hungry," Happy whined while holding his tummy and pouted.

"Now, that you mention it, I am, too. Let's go see if Erin is finished making breakfast. Race you!" Natsu had already started running and was almost at the house.

"Natsu, wait! Natsu~" Happy desperately flew after him.

They entered the kitchen, and Natsu shouted, "I win!" Happy was complaining about how he cheated and all, but Natsu was still grinning like a fool.

"Oh, you're just in time. Breakfast's ready." She put the plates in front of them.

"Yay! I've been waiting for this! Oh,"—Natsu notices that there are only two plates—"Erin, you're not eating?"

"I already ate. I'm good."

"Oh, okay, then." It was deceiving, but Natsu didn't buy it. Just as Erin passed him, he stabbed some food onto his fork with one hand while holding onto Erin with the other, then stuffed the food in her mouth. "Liar. You think I wouldn't notice?" Erin quickly swallowed before coughing.

With her hand at her neck, she yelled, "What are you doing?!"

"Giving you breakfast," Natsu replied before eating the meat off of his fork—the same fork he used to feed Erin. "Oi, Erin! This is delicious!" He began to sparkle.

"Thanks." Erin took off the apron and hung it on the nail on the wall next to her. Then, she headed for the door.

Just as she opened it, Natsu asked, "Where are you going?"

"Job. It starts today."

"Oh, okay. Come back safely~" He waved at her.

"Will do." _I hope_.

* * *

When she arrived at the designated place, Erin could already see people here, there, _everywhere_, and that made her feel a bit uncomfortable. The smiles that were on their faces made her feel disgusted. Those lies that one can make without even saying a word made her scowl. She was being given looks for the way she dressed to the wedding. Erin wore a blue and black striped tank top that had only one long sleeve on the inside with an over-sized white t-shirt that showed one of her shoulders on the outside, a pair of black cargo pants, and black sneakers. More importantly, they stared at the insignia on her neck. She thought that they probably didn't like where she put it since it made her look a bit like a dangerous person. Of course, that wasn't the image she wanted to portray.

Erin looked around, slowly observing. She was lost. Then, she noticed another person doing the same, only he was leaning his back against a pillar and his hands were in his pockets. The guy was in a silver silk suit with a pink tie. Pretty flashy tie he had there. Anyways, Erin walked over to him, thinking he was the one who requested the job. "Um...might you be the one who asked for a musician?"

"Huh? Oh, yeah. I...it's you?" That was quite rude to Erin. He looked at her as if she were from another world completely different from his.

"Erin." She reached out her right hand. The man just stared at it; maybe he was analyzing her rings? Weird, yes, it is, but there's always the possibility. Erin had on many types of rings, but they all had something in common: they all had a trace of black somewhere. On her index finger, Erin had a silver ring with a flat, black stone shining on top with a white "DEATH" engraved into the stone. Her middle finger had a ring that was black and white spirals; it was like two branches that were each black and white, wrapping around her finger. Her ring finger didn't have an actual ring; instead it had one red scar "ring" at the starting end of her finger, near her knuckles. The wound still looked fresh; bright red. There was no ring on her pinky. On her thumb, though, was a silver ring with hints of black engravings of negativity—like "depression," "sorrow," and the like in all capital letters, written in what looked like a stylish, sloppy cursive handwriting—all around it and a silver chain connected it to the silver bracelet that mimicked the ring on Erin's thumb. It was like an irregular pair of handcuffs, but there was no lock.

The man hesitated for another moment and never shook it. Erin let her arm fall back down to her side when he spoke up. "Are...you...are you _sure_ you can play an instrument?"

"Positive."

"I mean, this is an important event. If you can't play—"

"I say I can play, and so I can. Are you doubting my skills?"

"N-no! Not at all!" He seemed intimidated. "It's just that—"

"I know. Yeah, yeah. It's an important event that lasts a whole week. What kind of wedding lasts a week?"

"Well...the thing is, the wedding is only for today, but the rest of the job is for you to do a duet with...with my brother-in-law at the local auditorium."

"...fine by me." There was a moment of hesitation in her answer. Honestly, Erin didn't want to do this, but she forced herself to lie. She needed the money. Erin cared—oh, she cared, all right—about this, but she went against her will. Erin never really liked being in the limelight. She was in the shadows for the majority of her life, after all.

"O...okay. Well, right this...way," the man said, still unsure. As they were walking, Erin spoke up with some questions.

"How old are the couple?"

"Um...well, the bride is 24, and the groom is 21."

"Hm...they're quite young,"—Erin paused for a moment—"Do you want a 'classic' wedding?"

"C-classic?"

"Classic," Erin stated flatly. "Do you want the regular classical music? Mozart, Tchaikovsky, Bach, Beethoven, and all that good stuff."

"Oh...um...who are they?" Erin sighed at the man's ignorance.

_Seriously? The most famous composers, and he doesn't know even one of them._ "Piano; cello; all of that."

"Oh! That's what you meant! Yes, of course."

_Dumb ass._ Erin had a habit of cursing, obviously.

* * *

They made their way into the garden where the wedding was being held. The garden had rose bushes with roses of the colors pink, red, white, and yellow. To Erin, the yellow ones were her favorite in this case; they stood out. The bushes were aligned to make it like a maze. Too bad there were only roses. When Erin saw the garden, she had hoped for other flowers, like Amaryllis, anemone, tulip, iris, lisianthus (or eustoma), or Hydrangea.

"The piano is located back there." The man pointed. Erin nodded and walked there. The sight of the piano didn't delight her, either. No, not the piano itself, but how it was treated. The keys had dulled out and turned brown and beige. You could see scratch marks if you looked closely.

"Just how mean were they to you?" Erin murmured quietly to the piano as she carefully slid the tips of her fingers across its rough, white-painted wood. Then, she suddenly looked up because she felt someone's gaze. There, in front of her, stood a man in a white tuxedo with a black tie and white hat with a black stripe. He looked fairly young. The young lad had his hair tied back into a neat little ponytail, and a small hole was visible in his right earlobe. It must be a piercing, but he had been forced to take it out for the wedding or something similar. His face expression was a bit sad, and his eyes were looking at the piano.

_Oh...I get it. That's what this is all about. Poor guy._ Erin flashed a smirk before sitting down on the seat. Her hands were hovering over the keys. No one told her when to play, so she decided it was best to play now—on her on accord. The melody started out as a calm, soothing string of notes. Erin had her eyes closed and was unconsciously humming along. Then, Erin suddenly opened her eyes with a huge idiotic grin on her face. That was when the fun started.

Erin slid her fingers across the keys, sliding to the left from the right all the way down the keys. After that, she smashed her hands down into the keys—on the correct keys—for the chord that followed. She busted out some more great, catchy chords after a short pause.

_You can't be trusted._

_I sat here, hurt, but you continued to walk past._

_Maybe I should give up on you;_

_Maybe I should let you go at last,_

There was a moment of pause with a bit of a solo on the piano. Then...

_Because you let me go~!_

_You let me fall down._

_You crushed my dreams~_

_That were right in front of me; you let me drown~_

_That's why I'm going to fall into the dark._

_Let go of the light._

_Become a living corpse without a mind._

_Lose myself by the end of the night._

The chorus followed after, and Erin's smile became even bigger, reaching from ear to ear.

_Oh, before the night ends,_

_Let there be a dream in which I have killed all my friends._

_Oh, the Joker in me has laughed out loud._

_Of me, he is certainly proud._

_The deeds that I have done,_

_Let them be the only things I cannot shun._

_This is the sight of dreams,_

_Let them speak out with screams._

_This lovely sight of dreams,_

_It brings tears to my eyes, it seems._

Erin couldn't help herself. She just _had_ to play this song: "The Sight of Dreams" by the Jokers. Erin glanced up at the young man with a toothy smile as she sang. He stared at her, whether of awe, shock, or confusion, she had no idea. Erin gave him a quick wink with her left eye. The lad's eyes became wide for a moment before a smile played upon his lips. His eyes had soften.

_What a relief. I'm glad he's a bit better now. I couldn't stand the sight of him before._ Erin continued to play calmly and without care of the stares the so-called guests were giving her. They were probably all thinking the same thing: Why would that plebeian brat play such a song at a wedding? They had disgusted face expressions, some clicked their tongues, and others cursed at Erin under their breaths. When the song ended, however, one man clapped: the man in front of her.

"You have a nice voice, boy." Erin laughed a bit. "What's funny? Was it something I said?"

"Nah, don't dwell on it. Thanks, though, and I'm a girl."

"Oh, deeply sorry, miss. I didn't know. I hope I haven't offended you or anything."

"It's fine. It's fine. Anyways, I'm guessing you're the poor groom who was forced into this marriage."

"H-how'd you know?" he whispered in a low voice.

"I also guess that they didn't even include you in the planning of all of..._this_ mess." He laughed.

"You're right."

"_And_, I know that the yellow roses was your idea. You were excluded from the planning of this mess, except for the yellow roses."

He let out a little chuckle before replying, "Yes, except for the yellow roses. How exactly _did_ you know all of this?"

Erin shrugged. "Easy. They stood out."—She paused to look him in the eye—"Just like you."

The male sighed and said, "Yes, just like me. I'm Shiro."

"Erin." She wanted to change the topic back to what it was. "You don't belong here."

"...I know I don't. I rather not be here, either. I...I just have to."

"Why? Your decisions are made by you, not someone else. If you have even a little bit of regret, it is a choice you shouldn't be taking." _Although, who am I to talk? I just did what I told Shiro not to do._

"You're right, once again, but choices are chain reactions. If I didn't do what I did, I would have done something I would regret for the rest of my life."

"So, you're getting married to a woman you don't even like? Shiro, marriage is not just calling each other 'husband' and 'wife.' It's a promise that you make to and with each other, although many divorce because they couldn't do what they promised the other."

"How old are you?"

"15."

"Wow...to even have a youngster tell me what's right and wrong..."

"Shiro, I trust that you make the right choice."

"I _am_."

"Who am I to tell you what to do? Oh, right. I'm nothing but another stranger; human that live in this world that many share. I'm just trying to help. Just how important was the effect of the choices that made you do something you regret so?"

"I...my..."—he sighed—"My mother would leave me." Erin stayed silent. She already knew that there was another meaning behind those words. "She has a weak heart. Because of that, she is staying at a hospital. That hospital so happens to be the family of the person who I'm marrying. The deal was that if I married the person I'm going to marry today, my mother would be able to live. If I don't, they would not take care of my mother. The reason I cannot deny this deal is because even if I could move her to another hospital, the moment you remove the mask, my mother's heart will stop beating. That's how weak she is right now." Shiro blinked and looked straight at Erin. "That's why this choice that I made was so important."

Erin kept her mouth shut and stared at Shiro for a while. After a period of time, she slowly closed her eyes and started playing a soft, sweet tune on the piano. With her eyes still closed, she spoke up, "I was wrong. Sorry, I didn't know it was that bad."

"It's okay," he answered as he ruffled Erin's hair. Erin stopped for a moment, as if she was frozen for some time. She was quite surprised at the sudden gesture. However, after a few seconds, she regained her composure and continued to play the rest of the song. A barely visible smile was drawn on her face. She...she thought it felt like _home_, where she was always given affection, scoldings, and everything else; a place like Fairy Tail; a place with Natsu and Happy.

Erin kept playing, but she asked Shiro again, "Are you sure you want to follow through on this choice of yours? Are you sure you won't regret it? There's no going back, you know. The tracks that you have left cannot be erased."

"Positive." For a moment, Erin thought that Shiro is an extremely selfless man. It was a good trait, but it also had a downfall to it. It just might have been a great one at that. She became a little worried for the poor guy.

* * *

A half an hour passed or so, and the guests had seated themselves, waiting. Erin was actually look forward to seeing the bride; to see what type of hideous person that person was and if she knew about what her family made Shiro do. Even if her fingers moving instinctively across the keys, her eyes were glued on the entrance from which the bride would arrive.

Finally, the sound of footsteps could be heard from behind the rose-bush. She was coming. Then, Erin realized that it was the sound of running, not slow steps. The bride—who was supposed to be 24-years-old—came to a stop right at the bushes. The woman was panting; out of breath. She wiped the beads of sweat from her brow. Her hands were resting on her knees as she tried to catch her breath.

"Great! I made it!" The strange thing was that she had on a white, long-sleeved t-shirt, a pair of jet black skinny jeans, a pair of white sneakers, and black, nerdy spectacles rested on the bridge of her nose. There were leaves in her hair and grass stains on her clothes. "Sorry that I am late!" she apologized. "I got lost."

_Why in the world is she dressed like that? I mean, I'm dressed sort of like that, too, but that's not the point. It's her wedding, isn't it?_ Erin had many questions. What happened next shocked Erin the most, though...

The bride looked up and was somewhat delighted and surprised to see Erin there. "Oh! Fuyuki!" She was pointing and looking dead at Erin.

"Wait...me?!"

* * *

**Okay, I'm super duper happy that I got to update and post this chapter (on schedule, too). It's over 3,000 words. Oh, my God! I'm really happy, but I think I kind of made Erin worry too much for a stranger that she just met (Shiro). Oh, well. No harm done. Look forward to next Tuesday! Um...it's been a while, really, because I have work to do. I've stayed up late to finish assignments these days, so I haven't really had the time to write anything. Also, my mom got mad at me for various reasons, and I got yelled at for writing at somewhere around 10 or 11 at night. (Sigh) I had so many lectures on things. Anyways, my classmate's birthday was yesterday~ My brother bought her a cake. Speaking of my brother, I have to remind him about homework... Back on topic, "Fuyuki" is made up of the characters for "winter" and "tree," so it means "winter tree." I love winter, so I wanted to do something with that, and bam! That's what I got. Lol. Um...not so much Natsu in this chapter, but I did add (I guess) a bit of a lovey-dovey scene in the beginning. Well, that's it for this note. Until next time, my fellow readers~!^^ I do not own Fairy Tail. I do not own anything except my OC and story/stories.  
**


	4. Chapter 4

The bride ran up to Erin, jumped and slid across the lid of the grand piano, and pulled—more like yanked—her into an embrace. She just sat there, confused as fuck.

"It's been such a long time, but don't you dare think that I'd ever forget your face! Okay, maybe I did forget your face," she admitted, "but I'll never be able to forget your beautiful eyes." She let go of Erin's neck to cup her cheeks to have a better look them.

_Beautiful? I always thought they were ugly; they were always different . . ._ Erin thought. "Um . . . I think you have the wrong person."

"What? I could never!"

"My name's Erin, not Fuyuki. Sorry." Erin felt most uncomfortable right then and there. Not only was a stranger touching her, but everyone had eyes on her. She hated it. It took all of her not to smack the bride's hands away from her. She wanted to run away from all the boring eyes; it made her lungs become void of air. The whispers bothered her. The chops of words that Erin heard made her more than just conscious.

"What . . . plebeian . . . eyes . . . something wrong . . . bride . . ."

Never had Erin regret something so much. All she wanted to do was turn back time and not accept the job.

"I'd never mistake my own cousin," she said softly in a sighing whisper. Her hands were still on Erin's cheeks, and they were cold to the touch, despite the fact that she practically ran here. "Do you not recognize me . . . ?" She was afraid of Erin's answer. Erin shook her head, hesitantly. The bride took her hands away from Erin to indicate the area of her heart."It's me! It's Aki! Aki, you know?!"

"Sorry, I don't."

"No," she breathed. "You have to know . . ." She started to tear up, and Erin felt responsible.

"Please, don't cry," Erin pleaded. Aki wiped away her tears and got off the piano.

"Sorry," she apologized. She let out a laugh that made Erin want to cry, too. It was so _forced_—so sad . . . "I really thought it was someone else. Sorry, again, for startling you."

Aki walked up to her mother and told her to cancel the wedding for another day because she wasn't feeling well. Her mother scolded her and told her to follow through because Shiro was busy for the rest of the next week or so and the whole family was already present at the moment. Erin couldn't help but feel sorry for her.

"Yes, Mother . . ."

"Hurry back," she snapped, irritation was evident in her voice.

Ten minutes later, Aki came back, wearing a white wedding gown and heels. She also wore a veil and a single white rose decorated her hair. There was something wrong, and only two people could see it.

Erin and Shiro both noticed that Aki's eyes were glassy and there were bags under her eyes. Both saw that she was barely walking correctly; it looked as if Aki was going to fall over any second. Neither could make a move, however—Erin had to play the piano, and Shiro had to stand where the groom was meant to.

They all watched for a little more than fifteen seconds as Aki slowly walked towards Shiro, and Erin decided she had enough.

"Oh, what the fuck . . ." She stopped playing and got up. Erin walked up to Aki and held her by the shoulders to make sure she had support. "You're not all right, and you don't have to be. This whole thing is fucked up."

Erin led her to an empty chair to sit down on. The moment she turned around after letting Aki sit down, Aki's mother had slapped her right across the cheek, leaving a red mark and purple-lined bruises from her nails scratching her. Erin wasn't even surprised. She had expected this to happen sooner or later. It just happened to be later.

"Done yet?" Erin questioned with a straight face.

"What?" Aki's mother scowled.

"It's a yes-or-no question. 'What' is not an answer."

"_Excuse_ me?"

"Sorry, that's not an answer, either," Erin replied. Shiro smiled at her words and let out a small chuckle—just small enough so that he wasn't found out by others. Erin is quite the troublemaker when it comes to times like this. She'd rather make jokes to lighten up the mood of the person hurting rather than shout and make everything worse. In the corner of her eye, she could see Shiro smiling, and that brought up her mood.

_At least now he's smiling_, Erin thought, slightly relieved.

"Leave!"

"What are you not understanding about the question? There are only one of two answers that you can say. It's a 'yes' or a 'no,' not 'what,' excuse me,' or 'leave.' " A faint smirk was tugging at the corners of Erin's lips. She found this a bit amusing.

"Leave! You are not getting paid! It was a disaster, and it's all because of you, you . . . you _imbecile_! Marhk, get her out of here!" As she commanded, Mahrk, the guy who didn't know the famous composers, moved towards Erin, but was reluctant to touch her.

"What, you don't like me just because I'm trying to be kind to your daughter? I think I treat her better than you do at the very least." At her words, Mahrk tugged at her arm, trying to stop her from talking any more than she already has, but Erin yanked her arm away from his grip. Her eyes never left the other woman's face, and they dared to look into her eyes, which held a fierce glare. " 'Imbecile'? That's the best insult you have for me? I thought the God damn rich people used big vocabulary. I guess I thought wrong." Her smirk grew and grew as she talked. "Now, what words could I use to insult you? Hm? An acerebral person? Esurient? Honeyfuggle? Onerable? Superbious? Widdiful?"

Aki's mother opened and closed her mouth like a gaping fish. She didn't know what to say back at Erin. She had no idea what those words meant, but she did understand that they were insults to her.

Mahrk tugged Erin's arm more forcefully this time, making Erin turn to face him. There was anger in his expressions, but there was also anger in Erin's. He, however, was heaving. Mahrk was trying to control himself.

"What?" Erin challenged; a smirk played at her lips, and it's beginning to win. She's coming apart; becoming broken. "Did you have something to say, too? Did you not like what I said to your mother?" She let out a heartless laugh and glanced elsewhere for a fraction of a second before looking back into his eyes. "I guess you did. You are, after all, her son. Why wouldn't you be? I mean, of course you would be—"

"STOP! JUST STOP IT ALREADY! DON'T YOU SEE THAT YOU'RE MAKING THIS INTO A SCENE?! ALL YOU HAD TO DO WAS SIT THERE AND PLAY THE PIANO! YOU'RE A USELESS—"

"You're not like me," she finished what she was previously saying. They were looking at each other, and a silent moment was upon them. Mahrk looked a bit confused. First, it seemed as if she were rambling to herself, and then, there's that last sentence: it was just above a whisper.

Mahrk, however, was too angry to decipher or think about what she said. "Of course, I'm not! I was born and raised as high society! I have more money than you will ever have in your entire life! All I have to do is snap my fingers, and they come rolling in. You, however, have to work for it by doing jobs like this!"

"You know that's not what I meant," she stated calmly. Erin's cold eyes were searching; searching for certain words, but they never came.

Mahrk wasn't about to think; he was afraid of knowing the truth because it had the power to change his mind. He wanted to be angry at her—angry because she ruined everything and talked in such a manner towards his mother—and if the truth is going to change that, he'd rather not think about it. Howbeit, it was hard to make his mind stray from her words. Those eyes that looked through him were cold, and he could feel ice in his veins. It was almost impossible to breathe. He had forgotten how, and he didn't mind the burning sensation in his lungs at that moment because right then and there, he could only see the two of them and no one else. He couldn't hear his mother's commands and threats, see the many eyes that bore holes into his body from their stares, or even seem to speak.

Then, Mahrk blinked, and that brought back his surroundings and the situation at hand. He wished that he could go back to wherever he was before; he realized that he didn't want his life anymore. The numbness was nothing like he's ever experienced before; Mahrk felt trapped inside an endless abyss, but at the same time, he tasted freedom at its best. He could be whatever he wanted to be without any judging eyes and snarky comments.

Suddenly, Mahrk dropped Erin's arm and ran a hand through his hair, making his mother scold him for messing up his hair. For the first time in his life, he felt annoyed at her, and for the first time in his life, he glared at her. His mother's eyes went wide as she took in a silent breath. She couldn't believe her own son's attitude at the moment, and neither could he.

Erin smirked. She liked this side of him. He seemed rather normal now compared to his stuck-up self before. Mahrk seemed a little more human. Erin put her hands in her pockets and asked his mother once more. "Done yet?"

She, in turn, was fuming. Not only did she have to deal with Erin, now, she also had to deal with her son. "Mahrk, get her out of here _immediately_!" Erin looked over at Mahrk, and he was hesitating.

Mahrk didn't want to listen to his mother—no, not after he realized what the whole family was doing to his dear sister—and he also didn't want to hurt Erin. She did help Aki, after all, and the aftermath proved it all. He slightly grimaced as he took a look at her bruise and scratches. That was why he did what he did.

He helped Aki stand up and held her close as he directed her into the building, with Erin in tow. Mahrk tuned out his mother and ignored the confused and disgusted looks. This was his decision, and he knew that no one could stop him. He was his own person. He was growing up.

* * *

"Sit here, er . . ."

"It's Erin."

"Right. I'll be back with some medicine for that wound," he told Erin before turning to Aki. "Go change. I'll grab a few pills for you, too. Don't worry, okay? We can get away from here." Mahrk gave his sister a small smile, in which she smiled sweetly back at him.

"Thank you," she whispered with a hoarse voice. Mahrk gave her a kiss on the cheek, and they went their own ways.

Minutes later, Mahrk came back with a first-aid kit and some pill packets. He sat down next to Erin and opened up the first-aid kit to grab the dressing pad, bottle of alcohol, and a couple of cotton balls. Erin watched him, still wary of his intentions.

Mahrk reached his hand out towards her, and Erin flinched back, causing Mahrk to stop his hand mid-way.

"You don't mind touching me?" Erin asked. She was referring to the handshake and his hesitation when his mother asked him to kick her out.

However, Mahrk moved his hand again and said, "Don't worry. I'm not going to hurt you. I need to grow up, so why not start now?" He held her chin as he turned her head to the side to take a look at the wound his mother gave him. He grimaced. "Sorry . . . for everything, I guess." Then, he mumbled under his breath, "I don't think 'sorry' is going to be enough, though, looking at this wound."

He poured a bit of alcohol onto the cotton ball and gently dabbed at the wound. Erin would flinch and slightly move away each time Mahrk dabbed at it, which led to Mahrk holding Erin's chin once again.

"I can't sterilize it if you keep moving around like that . . ." he said gently.

"Well, it's not my fault," she murmured.

Mahrk chuckled and replied, "Of course, it's not. You're not in the wrong." His smile dropped. "It's my fault, and I'm sorry, but I don't regret it because you helped out my sister despite everything. I can't be more grateful. Thank you."

He then began to focus on putting on the dressing pad. Once it was on, he ran his finger around the perimeter of the pad just to make sure it stuck and that there were no air bubbles before retracting his hand to leave by his side.

Erin was relieved that the medicine was cool because the alcohol made her feel as if her skin were burning.

"Finished."

"Um, thanks . . ." Erin rubbed the back of her neck, unconsciously tracing parts of her insignia.

"No problem."

Aki finally came out in a plain, red skirt that stopped at her knees and a white blouse with a ribbon in the middle of the neckline with white, lacy flats. Mahrk handed her the pills, and she took them.

"Feeling better?"

Aki slowly nodded, and Erin could tell she wasn't. Aki was thinking about so many things at once; that was obvious to Erin. She was in the same situation many times before, and not one was a good experience.

"Let's go, then." Mahrk went to his sister's side and held her against him, just like before, to steady her.

"Where are you planning to go?"

"I haven't thought about that too much, but I was thinking maybe I should bring her to our summer villa two towns over. Of course, that means that we have to take the train, and it's going to be a long journey, but I think it's going to be worth it."

"Do you need me to escort you?"

"That would be grateful. However, I think our family has caused you enough trouble. You can be on your way, and when we get to our villa, we'll send over the money."

"What about the whole week?"

"I don't know about that. You might want to check in on that with Shiro. It depends if he still wants to or not."

"Okay, be safe." Mahrk gave me a quick nod and was walking towards the door when I spoke up. "I do say, Mahrk, you've grown quite a lot in such little time. You're very capable, but sometimes you act like such a bastard." Erin gave him a playful smirk, and Mahrk chuckled at her words.

"I'll say 'thank you' despite the fact that you complimented and insulted me in the same sentence."

Aki turned around for just a moment and said to Erin, "I regret sneaking you out for some fresh air and losing you in the city that day . . . on July 7, X777."

* * *

**HOLY SHIT. I FINISHED FOUR CHAPTERS BEFORE THE DEADLINE. YESSSSSSSSS. Okay, I can do this if I put my mind to it. I had about two weeks to write four chapters, and I did it. Of course, I have to put into account that school hasn't started yet, but it will in about a week or so, and I'm sure that I'll be quite busy from now on. Howbeit, I will still try to squeeze in a chapter per month from now on.**

**I plan on updating once a month, and the story that I will update is totally at random. I will put into account when was the last time I updated that story and if the latest chapter has an ending where I can transition into the next chapter easily. I update on the first of each month at noon, and for each month that I do not update, I will make up for that in the next month with the amount of chapters I owe you since my hiatus.**

**Thank you for understanding, and until next time, my fellow readers~^^**

**I do not own Fairy Tail. I do not own anything except my OC and story/stories.**


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